An all-female team of brilliant young scholars in Afghanistan has just developed life-saving technology to help patients with COVID-19. Their mobile invention is cost effective and battery-powered with a life of 10 hours per charge.
The seven girls are part of the Afghan Robotics Team based in Herat. Their goal was to build a ventilator model that would help patients in their country where such technology is sparse. Their design was based in part on a blueprint from MIT, and they were also working collaboratively with robotics experts at Harvard University. The model includes parts as common (but unexpected!) as those from old Toyota Corollas, such as gear boxes, motors, and windshield wipers.
As reported by the Good News Network, the team of young women have succeeded in building a ventilator that would cost $500-700 to make versus the $20,000-$50,000 that is needed normally. The girls, aged 15 to 17, are part of the robotics team that was formed three years ago by Afghan tech entrepreneur Roya Mahboob. Mahoob’s organization, Digital Citizens Fund, oversees the Afghan Dreamers team (as well as facilitating classes in robotics and STEM throughout the region).
Because the testing capacity in Afghanistan is so low (at a maximum of 1,000 people per day), the pandemic has ravaged parts of the country, and the number of cases accounted for is considered to be under-reported. Back in March, Herat’s governor challenged doctors, industrialists, universities, and the Afghan Dreamers to devise an alternative construction to the ventilator that would make the machines more accessible to the people who have needed them desperately.
Without a doubt, the Afghan Dreamers faced challenges while building their prototype. Because it is the Muslim month of Ramadan, the girls were fasting during the peak hours through which they worked. And building a machine to help patients from COVID-19 didn’t mean they were immune to its risks. The girls had to wear masks and gloves when they worked in close quarters; they tried to work separately as much as they could.
The group is no stranger to challenges. In 2017, the group drew international attention when they traveled 500 miles from their home city to Kabul in order to receive visas for the Washington-based First Global Challenge robotics competition. For no reason that was ever stated, the girls were denied the visas. U.S. Department of State officials were subject to enormous pressure from public pushback, and eventually, the visas were issued. The Afghan Dreamers won a silver medal for their water purification invention – even though parts for their model were also delayed in shipping.
Afghanistan’s Minister of Health noted, “We appreciate the initiative and creativity in Afghanistan’s health sector…after they are approved, we will use these ventilators and we are determined to contract with companies so we can also export them.” In the meantime, the Afghan Dreamers are once again getting global recognition for their innovative genius.